Out Fishing
by Long-Vuong
Summary: "Welcome to the fourteenth annual Clayton Countywide fishing tournament!" Ever-cheerful Michelle decides to enter a tournament. May the one who catches the most fish win! (However, it should be noted that strange things lurk in Clayton County's lake. For example, a merperson with a red tail.)
1. Chapter 1

"Welcome to the fourteenth annual Clayton Countywide fishing tournament!"

It was a nice, sunny day, and Michelle Espadon was looking forwards to catching a really big fish. _Maybe I'll get lucky and win the tournament!_ Michelle thought to herself. _But it won't matter if I lose. I just want to catch fish!_

Lugging her tackle box and fishing rod up the trail to the Lake Whitfield boat dock, she spied a few of her neighbors and friends getting ready for a long day of fishing.

"Good morning, Michelle!" shouted someone from the side of the dock. "I see you're entering the tournament today."

"Oh, hello Mona!" Michelle shouted back. "Of course I'm entering. What did you expect?"

The two girls stood together and looked at the rest of the competition. There were people from all over Clayton County: an Asian man with a small, fluffy dog, a woman with an orange flower in her hair, two brothers speaking in Italian accents, and many more.

"Isn't that guy over there last year's champion?" asked Michelle. A silver-haired boy with a puffin flapping around his head was helping a gruff-looking man launch his boat.

"Yes," said Mona. "That's Emil Steilsson. He caught nearly one hundred pounds of fish during last year's tournament, and many people expect him to win again this year."

"I hope I can beat him," Michelle said cheerfully. "It can't be too difficult to catch that much fish, right?"

"Ah…"

There was the sudden squawk of a microphone. "Attention, attention!"

Everybody looked towards the judging tents. An excited-looking man with glasses was holding up a clipboard and waving it around randomly. "The tournament starts in fifteen minutes! All entrants must be in the water by then! I repeat, the tournament starts in fifteen minutes. All entrants must be in the water by then."

Michelle was surprised. "Sorry, Mona, I have to go. Can't be late now, can I?"

"It's fine. I'll be rooting for you on the sidelines," said Mona. "Good luck! And be careful-"

Michelle had already run off towards her boat. "Be careful, Michelle… strange things lurk in Lake Whitfield," she finished. Sighing, Mona walked over to the spectator's seats. This surely would be a long, nerve-wracking day.

Just as some of the first competitors got out into the water, Michelle arrived at her small boat, the Swordfish. Swinging her tackle box and rod into it, she clambered in after untying the rope holding it to the dock.

In her mind, she performed a quick equipment check. _Rod, check. Bait and hooks, check. Life vest, check. Emergency flares, check. Engine keys, check_. She went through a list of other things before finally starting the motor and slowly moving away from the dock. _Full tank of gas, check. Deck shoes, check. Lucky hat_- she pulled her lucky hat from the tackle box and put it on her head- _check._

Now almost all of the anglers were on the calm waters of Lake Whitfield. Motoring out, she looked around expectantly. I wonder if any of my friends are competing.

There was a second squawk of the microphone, and the same announcer shouted, "Five minutes until start time. I repeat, five minutes until start time! This is the last call for competitors who wish to enter the fishing tournament! Five minutes until start time!"

On land, a few anglers rushed towards their boats. Other than that, there wasn't much movement.

After waiting a while, the mic came on again and the same person said, "Welcome to the fourteenth annual Clayton Countywide fishing tournament! I hope you all are having a great time!"

There was a smattering of applause from the crowd gathered on shore. "Alright, here are the rules," the announcer shouted. "First up, all fish caught must be of legal size, weight and/or length! Second, no two anglers may be within five feet of each other after the tournament begins! Third, no cheating! Fourth and finally, have fun out there, people!"

Another smattering of applause. "A list of the anglers competing is available at the front tent," continued the announcer. "The tournament starts at nine this morning and runs until three PM. Speaking of which, we'll start in just about two minutes. Get ready, people!"

There was the sound of motors revving and sputtering. Michelle's motor, instead of roaring, coughed a bit and politely sputtered to life.

"Ten, nine, eight…" The announcer was joined by the crowd and quite a few of the fishermen.

"…four, three, two, one! Go!"

All at once, the fishing boats sped off (or slowly made their way) out into Lake Whitfield. Rocking violently in the wake of the large, more powerful boats, Michelle and the Swordfish had to wait a while before puttering out towards one of their favorite fishing spots.

* * *

**I've always wanted to write a seemingly random story about fish. So here it is.**

**Michelle Espadon is the name I'm using for Seychelles. This is because if I gave her France's last name, her and Monaco would have the same last name and would therefore be related.**

**Mona is the name I am using for Monaco. I've got a lack of naming skills.**

**By the way, Espadon in French means swordfish. Yep, naming skills galore.**

**- Long-Vuong**


	2. Chapter 2

Within the first fifteen minutes, Michelle had hooked a spotted sunfish and was busy reeling it in. After that, she caught a flathead catfish, a white crappie, and a gizzard shad one after another.

Drifting in the warm, shallow water, Michelle patiently waited for another bite. But there was nothing. So, she sped off towards another part of the lake.

Using this method, she caught a blue catfish, a smallmouth bass, a yellow perch, another white crappie, and a spotted sucker. But as the sun neared its zenith, her luck started to run out.

Sitting quietly, the Swordfish drifted about for hours as Michelle waited. And waited. And waited. Nothing seemed to be moving in the lazy noontime sun. Even the normally strong wind stood still, as if waiting for something to happen.

There was a sudden flash of movement to her right. _Was it a fish? It has to be! It's probably another fish!_

Reeling in her line and putting on fresh bait, Michelle cast her line towards the sudden disturbance. After a moment of tense silence, nothing happened. The line simply sat there in the still water, lifeless.

And then there was a touch. Then a nibble. Then a definite bite.

Excitedly, Michelle started to reel it in. But whatever was on the end of the line was strong- very strong. Luckily, Michelle's sturdy rod didn't break when the thing started to race around.

Attempting to fight the speeding fish, Michelle eventually resorted to trying to tire it out. But whatever it was kept on fighting.

Michelle lurched forwards as the thing nearly pulled her overboard. Pulling back, she thought to herself,_ This fish must be huge! If I can catch it, maybe I'll be able to win the tournament!_

She caught a glimpse of the fish as it neared the surface. Instead of jumping, though, only its tail broke the surface of the water.

And what an impressive, monstrous tail it was! Michelle had never seen anything like it. Just the tail alone was probably three or four feet long. Plus, it was a brilliant red color, and Michelle didn't know any sort of fish that was that shade of red.

Pulling harder, Michelle fought the fish for nearly an hour. Inch by inch by inch, she pulled it in closer. Finally, she got the beast to within a few feet of the boat. "On the count of three, haul it out of the water!" she said to herself. "One, two… three!"

With a mighty heave, she pulled the enormous fish into the boat. Collapsing onto the side of the boat, Michelle suddenly realized that what she had caught wasn't really a fish.

It-no, he- was a merman… merperson? Michelle wasn't too sure, because whatever it happened to be was flopping around the boat like a fish out of water.

Trying to get a good look at the merman, Michelle dodged the bits of bait and random object that were flung around as he struggled. "Hey! Stop flailing around, Mr. Merman! You're ruining my boat!"

The merperson stopped and stared at her. "Wait, you can speak Mermish? That shouldn't be possible!"

Now Michelle was confused. "I'm not speaking Mermish, I'm speaking English! You're speaking English too!"

There was a very awkward moment of silence.

"Do you have a name?" asked the merman.

"What?" Michelle said, somewhat put off. "Of course I have a name. I'm Michelle Espadon. Do you have a name, Mr. Merman?"

The merman looked slightly irked. "I'm Mathias Kohler."

After a moment, Michelle noticed something. "How are you breathing up here? I mean, above water. Shouldn't you be-"

"It's way too complicated to explain," said Mathias. "Now could you please get this thing off of me?"

Tangled around his arm was a wad of her fishing line. Surprisingly, the hook and bait were nowhere to be found.

Michelle thought for a moment. How could she fix this problem…!

The merman watched curiously as the girl started rummaging through the random objects strewn around the boat. Suddenly, she emerged triumphant with a knife in her hands.

"Wha-What are you doing with that?!" Mathias backed away slightly. "That's sharp!"

Michelle frowned slightly, lowering the sharp implement. "Stop being a scaredy-cat. It's just a knife. Now hold still before I accidentally cut you."

Before Mathias even flinched, Michelle had cut the line off. "…Thanks?" he said, surprised.

"No problem. Do you need help getting out of the boat, or are you okay?" asked the girl cheerfully.

"I'm fine." Mathias managed to pull himself over the edge of the boat and into the water.

"It was nice meeting you, Mr. Mathias!" she called out.

"It was nice meeting you too! Bye!" shouted the merman before he disappeared.

"Good-bye!" Michelle took a deep breath and looked at all of the things scattered around her normally clean boat. What a mess.

She took a look at her watch as well. It read 2:46 PM.

The tournament was almost over! Silently, she cursed the merman for having taken over too much of her time. Well, at least she caught some fish.

The mere thought of fish made Michelle feel happier. Turning the Swordfish around, she headed back to shore.

* * *

**This chapter may seem slightly random, but it will make sense in the end.**

**The reason Mathias is a mermaid is that it seems that mermaid stories teend to come from around Denmark. If you search fanart sites for merman Denmark pictures, they are rather common.**

**- Long-Vuong**


	3. Chapter 3

"All entrants please head to the front tent! I repeat, all entrants to the front tent." The announcer was busy directing the returning competitors towards the tent where the fish were weighed.

Carrying two bags that were absolutely loaded with fish, Michelle patiently waited in line. After all, she was pretty used to waiting. And waiting. And waiting.

Finally, it was her turn to enter the tent. Ducking inside, she was greeted by an assistant with a worn-looking clipboard.

"Last name," muttered the assistant.

"Espadon."

"How do you spell that?"

"E-s-p-a-d-o-n. Espadon."

The assistant scribbled her name down onto a piece of paper, then directed her towards the back of the tent.

Ahead of her was a large table with a set of electronic scales on it. Gently setting her fish down, she watched as the numbers on the display started rising upwards.

"Seventy-two point four," said the assistant as he jotted down the final number. Tearing off the piece of paper and pinning it onto a scoreboard, the assistant waved her off.

Walking out of the tent, Michelle immediately found herself in the middle of a crowd that was mulling around a makeshift stage.

"Michelle! Over here! They're about to announce the results." Mona was waving to her from the front.

Michelle waved back. "Mona, you wouldn't believe what happened today! I caught a-"

They were suddenly interrupted by a squawking microphone. Up on stage, the bespectacled announcer was yelling.

"Alright guys, are you ready for the results!" There was an enthusiastic cheer from the crowd.

"Okay then! In fifth place, we have Elizabeta Hedervary!"

A woman with an orange flower in her hair came up to the stage amid polite applause.

"In fourth place, Feliciano Vargas!" A cheerful-looking young man skipped forwards.

"In third place, Kiku Honda! In second place, Tino Vainamoinen! And in first place…" The announcer paused for dramatic effect, "Is…"

Deep inside, Michelle wished that it was her. _I hope I win I hope I win I hope I win._

"Emil Steilsson! For the second year in a row! Congratulations, Emil!"

The young winner held up his trophy proudly.

Michelle sighed. Mona patted her on the back and said, "It's alright. There's always next year."

"No, it doesn't really matter." Michelle looked quite cheerful. "What really matters is that I caught FISH!"

At her exclamation, a lot of people in the crowd turned and stared at her. Blushing red, Michelle hid her face behind her hands.

After the crowd had dispersed, a chart that showed the rankings of the other anglers was put up. Overall, Michelle had come in ninth place. Considering the number of people who had entered the competition, it wasn't too bad of a ranking.

Continuing her banter from before, Michelle slowly walked alongside Mona as they packed up their stuff. "Today was really exciting. I caught something so weird! You wouldn't even believe-"

Suddenly, Michelle stopped herself. _Should I tell her?_

Mona waited for Michelle to finish.

"Ah… I-it was a really, really big, red fish! Really, really big!" She spread her arms wide to show how gigantic the 'fish' was.

"That's impossible," said Mona, frowning slightly. "No fish that large could live in Lake Whitfield."

"But I caught it! It was real! But…"

"What?"

"It got away." There was a sudden awkward silence, and Michelle sincerely wished that she hadn't started the conversation.

"Oh! Look at the time. Sorry, Mona, I have to go!" Waving a good-bye to her friend, Michelle ran off towards the parking lot. Phew, what a close one… Mona probably thinks I'm getting weirder.

Sighing yet again, Mona watched her friend run off… yet again. Walking slowly towards the lake, she sat down at the edge of a dock and dipped her toes in the water.

At once, a head rose out of the lake. "Something is troubling you," said the merman, flicking his silvery-blue tail in unease.

"Michelle accidentally caught once of your kind. You know very well what could happen, Lukas."

Lukas stared at her blankly. "We should wipe their memory of meeting each other. Both Michelle and the merperson you speak of. That way, no harm will befall either of them."

"You realize that the merman she caught was that wild Mathias," said Mona. "That fact alone may make the situation even more difficult to solve. He's so stubborn he may remember bits and pieces after the mind-wipe, causing even more trouble."

"I see. The best thing to do would be to watch and wait, then." With a flick of his tail, Lukas sank back into the deep green depths.

Still sitting on the edge of the dock, Mona watched the last remaining fishermen leave. "What an exciting day it was today," she said to herself with a slight smile as the sun slowly crept back below the horizon.

* * *

**I've read a few mermaid stories, and they all seem to involve a person who sees a merperson and all the merpeople are wondering, "Do we wipe this human's memory or not?" **

**- Long-Vuong**


	4. Epilogue

_Epilogue/Aftermath_

Lukas hit Mathias on the head.

"Ow! What was that for?" whined Mathias.

"What have I told you about humans and the surface world? Especially fishing-humans."

"But the bobbly thing on the end of the fishing line was so shiny! You know I like shiny things?" Mathias revealed part of a fishing line with a hook and silvery plastic baitfish attached. "When I this bit off the line I got tangled up. It was an accident, I swear!"

Lukas had already begun swimming away. "Hey!" called Mathias. "Wait, where are you going?"

Lukas was even farther away now. "Lukas! Hey, Lukas! Wait for me!"

* * *

**Slightly random ending, it seems. This story was originally going to be a one-shot, but it was way longer than expected.**

**I hope you enjoyed.**

**- Long-Vuong**


End file.
